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Wine Description
The Story
This Champagne comes from a vineyard called Les Couarres, located in the center of the village of Merfy. The clay soil imparts richness and depth, while its minerality emphasizes the impression of freshness on the palate. This Champagne is often the most balanced wine of the house, perfect for pairing with food.
- Blend : 60% Pinot Noir, 40% Chardonnay
- Dosage : 6 grams of sugar per liter
- Vinification : Stainless-steel tanks, with the wine aging on its lees until March of the following year
- Age de la vigne : 30 years old
- Vintages : 2002, 2004
Vintage 1999
A difficult start to the year led to early budbreak. There were some damaging hailstorms in early May, but the frost ultimately stayed away. The summer was overall warm and thanks to the hot and dry August, the grapes looked promising for the harvest. However, a damp September challenged producers and dilution was an issue for some. The 1999 harvest that started on September 15th produced a large yield (12,989 kg/ha) of sweet grapes that resulted in soft wines, low in acidity, which produced Champagnes that, in many cases, miss linearity and structure. Voluptuous and enjoyable with ripe, fruity, even exotic characters but in most cases for the medium-term only, even if the best seem to be maturing better than initially expected. The red wines of the year were exceptional and resulted in some outstanding prestige cuvée rosés, such as Louis Roederer Cristal Rosé, Taittinger Comtes de Champagne Rosé and Bollinger La Grande Année Rosé.